A top Hospital Authority official on Sunday said public hospitals are bracing for a possible wave of flu and Covid infections.

Dr Larry Lee, a chief manager at the authority, said viruses are more active in the current cold weather, and a surge in cases would put hospitals under pressure.

Lee said they were stepping up manpower and other resources at the hospitals to admit new patients more quickly.

"It's hard to say whether the flu or Covid will be more widespread. In the United States, both are equally bad. There may not be an accurate estimate. Should both viruses hit, we believe things will be more hectic than what they are now," he told Commercial Radio.

However, Lee said people need not worry too much about a new Covid variant JN.1.

The variant has been blamed for a surge in infections in various parts of the world, but Lee said it should not cause particularly serious complications or more people to be hospitalised.

He urged elderly people to get vaccinated, noting that the latest jab is effective against the new strain.

The Centre for Health Protection had said it expects JN.1 to replace XBB as the dominant variant in the territory.